Assam MLA Shiladitya Dev, who gave his resignation to the BJP earlier this week after he was denied a ticket to contest the assembly election, has returned to the party fold as the BJP said he will continue to remain in the party as an "important member". Assam minister and North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA) convenor Himanta Biswa Sarma and BJP National General Secretary Dilip Saikia met Mr Dev at his home on Friday. Mr Dev, who had announced that he will contest as an independent, has now decided to sit out this three-phase election to the 126-member assembly.